RELATED ARTICLES

Share this article

Share

'The music was clean and the dancing was also clean. Overall, it was just a group of kids, Mormon or not Mormon, that wanted to enjoy themselves without being influenced by what our modern society believes to be the norm.'

The students were encouraged to skip the usual pricey practices, such as buying new dresses or arriving in a limousine, and most were taken by their parents, who then socialized together in a separate room.

Alternative night: Students are dropped off by their parents, instead of taking extravagant limousines

Cheese! Cassie Marriott, 16, and Jed Fuller, who traveled from Connecticut, pose for a photo at the prom

Some students like Anna and junior Matt Norton said they would also be going to their school's prom, while others attended instead of their school's event.

'I'm going to my school prom in May,' Norton, a fellow Mormon who attends Morristown High School said. 'The types of dancing and music will be very different. It will be more inappropriate at the school prom.'

And he added: 'Girls still look good in modest dresses.'

The prom began eight years ago when students complained to their parents about their high school dances, the Star-Ledge explained.

Respectable distance: Mckenzie Alvarez, 16, and Joe Cicon, 16, share a dance at the Mormon prom - an event that began 8 years ago when teens complained about their lewd school dances

Getting to know each other: Justin Lippert, 18, and Jennifer Dulin, 18, talk at one of the prom tables. All students at the dance must abide by its rules to keep a distance and avoid short skirts and alcohol

Two local Latter-day youth leaders, Cindy Manchester from Pompton Plains and Heidi Elton from Short Hills, joined together to address the concerns their daughters and other students had with their school dances, including steep prices and immodest clothes.

They approached their church leaders and their plan was approved, with the first prom being held in 2006. Mormon churches across New Jersey sponsor the prom.